The quote is the easy part to compare. The rest of the cost is harder to see: the time people spend away from work, getting everyone to the same place, and the hours someone puts in to organize it. Depending on your team, those can change which option comes out cheaper.
What goes into the real cost
The price you pay the provider, the venue or the nonprofit is only the starting point.
Time away from work comes next. An activity off-site means travel time on top of the activity itself, while one at the office can fit into time you already have, like a team lunch.
Travel costs money too, whether it’s a bus or mileage, and someone has to arrange it.
Then there’s the organizer. Someone books the activity, answers questions, buys supplies if they aren’t included, and follows up afterward. That time rarely shows up in a budget, but it’s real.
Group size matters as well. Some formats need a minimum number of people, and others can only take a small group, which means splitting a larger team across several dates. And if part of the team is remote, an activity in one physical place leaves them out.
The three formats side by side
| Impact Kits | Volunteer day at a nonprofit | Hosted event | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $50 to $85 per participant, U.S. shipping free both ways | Ask the nonprofit, some ask for a donation | A quote from the provider, per person or per group |
| Where | At your office | At the nonprofit | At your office or a venue |
| Travel | None | Getting everyone there and back | Depends on the venue |
| Organizer’s work | Order, receive one box, send it back | Find a nonprofit with space that week, coordinate the visit | Book the provider and the room |
| Group size | 10 or more, no maximum | Set by the nonprofit | Set by the provider |
| Remote team members | Kits can be sent on to them | Hard to include | Depends on the format |
| Where the help goes | A nonprofit partner listed on each kit page | The nonprofit you visit | Depends on the provider |
The Impact Kits column comes from the kit pages. The other two vary a lot by city, nonprofit and provider, so treat them as a starting point and ask each option the same questions.
An example
Say you have a team of 20 and you’re looking at the Teddy Bears for Children kit at $65 per participant. The price is $1,300, and U.S. shipping is free both ways. What’s left is the time for the session itself and the organizer’s time to place the order and send the box back. Sales tax may be added at checkout.
For a volunteer day or a hosted event, take the quote and add travel, the hours away from work and the organizer’s time. Then compare the totals.
Easy things to miss
When people compare these options, the same few things get left out. Quotes come in for different headcounts, so they aren’t really comparable. Tax and travel get added after the decision. Remote team members get forgotten, which raises the real cost per person who took part. And nobody asks what they’ll know afterward about where the help went, which matters if you need to report on it.
A worksheet
Fill in one column per option.
| Line | Option 1 | Option 2 | Option 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price for our headcount | |||
| Shipping or delivery | |||
| Travel | |||
| Hours away from work | |||
| Organizer’s hours | |||
| Sales tax | |||
| Total | |||
| Can remote people join? | |||
| What we’ll know afterward |
Which one fits
A volunteer day makes sense when the team can leave the office for half a day and there’s a nonprofit nearby with room for you. It usually takes the most scheduling, since you’re working around the nonprofit’s calendar.
A hosted event makes sense when you want someone else to run the session and there’s a budget for it.
Kits make sense when you want to stay at the office, or when part of the team is remote.
Whichever you’re considering, ask the same five questions: What’s the total for our headcount, including shipping, travel and tax? What’s the minimum and maximum group size? How far ahead do we need to book or order? What does our organizer need to do before and after? And what will we know afterward about where the help went?
You can see all the kits with the price per participant on each one.
